I had read once that when you’re waiting your perception of time gets warped. Your mind tricks you into thinking it was three times longer than it actually is. I’ve experimented with groups where I would start a timer while they sat in silence. After a period of time, I would ask them to guess how long they sat there. Sure enough they were guessing two to three times the time they were there. I then like to ask what thoughts were going through their mind and what emotions were they experiencing the last time they had to wait at a restaurant or a retail establishment. It turns out we don’t like to wait and often get worked up in the process. Waiting is hard by itself. It’s even more difficult when you’re not sure it is going to end or if you’re going to get what you want. God uses these times to test us and grow us.
Abraham had to wait around 25 years for the promise of a son. God used that period in his life to grow his faith and to show him anything was possible. Joseph waited in a prison in Egypt for his dream to come true. While he was waiting, God was maturing and positioning him to fulfill the dreams. David went back to watching sleep while he waited after being anointed king. Then he spent years on the run living in the wilderness. God used that time to teach him how to shepherd people, win the hearts of a nation and develop leadership skills. In the Parable of the Ten Virgins, five waited patiently and did what they were supposed to do in that period. Five didn’t. What we do while we wait matters.
Lamentations 3:25 says, “The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him” (ESV). Are you seeking God in the waiting or are you complaining? Has your mind told you it’s been too long? We must trim our wicks in our waiting so we’re ready to be used when He’s ready to fulfill His promise. We must let our endurance and faith increase when nothing seems to be happening. God may be positioning you and others and you don’t even know it. He may be developing skills as well. Don’t rush His process because the promise is on the other side of it. I don’t know how long you’ll have to wait, but God has a pattern of having His people wait. He also has a pattern of being faithful to those who do and to those who seek Him in the waiting.
Photo by Gabrielle Henderson on Unsplash
Devotions by Chris Hendrix 